Long Beach council elects Garcia as vice mayor at inaugural ceremony

LONG BEACH - City Councilman Robert Garcia is Long Beach's new vice mayor.

The council elected Garcia to the position Tuesday at its inaugural ceremony. Garcia, the youngest council member at the age of 34, is a college administrator at Long Beach City College and instructor at USC.

He represents the 1st District, covering part of downtown and neighborhoods to the north, including Willmore City.

"It's an honor to be able to serve the city we love so much," said Garcia, who was first elected in 2009.

"I look forward to working with Mayor (Bob) Foster and the council on moving the city forward."

The vice mayor serves a two-year term in Long Beach.

The position is vested with the duties and powers of the mayor, except for the ability to veto actions of the council, when the mayor is absent, has vacated office or is unable to perform his or her duties.

Garcia succeeds 2nd District Councilwoman Suja Lowenthal as vice mayor. Lowenthal and 9th District Councilman Steve Neal were also nominated for the vice mayorship.

Before Garcia was selected, four council members, among them Lowenthal, were sworn in for terms expiring July 18, 2016.

Patrick O'Donnell, the 4th District representative, officially became the first member of the council to begin a third term since Long Beach voters approved term limits in 1992. Three tried previously.

O'Donnell, whose district covers the Los Altos area, defeated business marketing consultant Daryl Supernaw in a June runoff. To get on the runoff ballot, O'Donnell won second place as a write-in candidate in the April primary.

Labor representative Al Austin took over as councilman for the 8th District, replacing Rae Gabelich, who was termed out of office this year. The 8th covers parts of Bixby Knolls and North Long Beach.

He won election outright in the primary, besting Lillian Kawasaki, an elected division director of the Water Replenishment Board of Southern California.

Austin is the third African-American now serving on the nine-member council, the most in Long Beach's 115-year history.

Lowenthal defeated two challengers in April to win a second elected term.